A Rose By Any Other Name
by IvoryRose888
Summary: A Soul-Eater Tattoo Parlour/Flower Shop AU in which Maka is a plant-loving college student, and Soul is an aspiring tattoo artist. Though their shops are right next door, they never really saw one another until that day. Rate T for possible language.


"Let's see…we have 5 dozen red, 2 dozen white, 1 dozen yellow…a couple of Gypsy and a few Circus….alright, we can definitely do that! We'll figure out the price after we wrap them, but they shouldn't top $50. Yes, of course. Thank you so much! See you then."

Maka Albarn placed the cordless phone back in its cradle with a smile. This was definitely the right job choice. For a long time, she thought she wanted to be a doctor, a surgeon like her mama, but a routine blood test before her freshman year at Shibusen College revealed her deathly fear of needles. The medical field just wasn't her calling. However, a weekend field trip with her best friend and now co-worker, Tsubaki, presented her with a new passion: botany.

Death City was famous for it's botanical garden. It was the largest and healthiest in the entire country, but the real marvel lied in the fact that Death City was surrounded by desert, nothing but a barren, sand-filled wasteland for miles. It was a modern marvel, one of the city's many prides, and Maka spent hours observing, sketching, and recording the fauna of the expansive greenhouse. Plants were her life now, and, though her steady job in the flower shop wouldn't completely cover college costs, nor would her botany degree diminish them as soon as she'd like, the benefits were worth it. Daily time with what she loved was definitely a plus, and when business slowed, she had time to get homework done and read to her heart's content. She had whole encyclopedias of flowers and their given significance stacked underneath the front counter, ready to be pulled out and flipped open.

Which was exactly what she planned to do now. Flip open a book, that is. Seeing as it was a Thursday afternoon, business was rather slow, so Maka propped up on her stool, gazed longingly toward her encyclopedias, and begrudgingly hefted a thick tome with "The Works of Faulkner" printed along the spine onto her lap. Maka could appreciate William Faulkner's prose as much as the next well-read college student, but the actual content was less than savory. She figured if it got her through American Lit-

"Uh…uh um." Maka started, snapping her gaze upright when a sound like thick gravel filled the small space.

A man stood before her, posture hunched with his hands in his pockets.

"Hi!" She slapped on her customary chipper grin. "How can I help you?"

"Lookin' for a flower." The slouched man ground out, his eyes hooded by strikingly white hair.

"Well you've come to the right shop!" Maka chuckled. "What kind of flower are you looking for?"

"M'not sure."

"Well," She was starting to get irritated. Why did he even come here if he didn't know what he wanted? She inhaled, preparing her spiel she gave to every male who came in here with posture like his. After all, they only ever came for one reason, right? Cocking a hip, she quipped, "What'd you do?"

"Huh?" His head jerked up, brushing his lengthy bangs back enough to reveal a pierced eyebrow and striking crimson irises.

"They're for your girlfriend, right? What'd you do to make her mad?"

"What? No no no. I don't- it's for a tattoo."

Now it was her turn to look perplexed.

Sighing, he thrust a thumb to his right and grunted, "Work in the tattoo parlor next door."

"Oh!" She chastised herself for not noticing the obvious splay of ink up and down his arms, peeking out from behind the fabric covering his chest. "Of course! Yeah, I know the place. You know the owner's son?"

"Blake? Yeah, he comes in sometimes. I've only been working there for a month or so, but I know him. Can't draw worth a damn." He chortled, biting onto his pierced lip a bit when she giggled along with him. "Can't believe he's Sid's kid."

"Yeah." She agreed, remembering that the shop was a custom tattoo joint. "We went to school together. He's an idiot, but he's kind of like family."

Soul just grunted, shuffling a bit as he gazed at his feet. "So…"

"Right. Flower tattoo." Maka rose and stretched a bit, her fingers twitching when his gaze strayed to her shirt line. Mustering every ounce of control she had to keep from pummeling the perv with one of her encyclopedias, she bit out, "You have absolutely _no_ idea what you need?"

"Nope." He shrugged, and, for some reason she couldn't fathom, it was…cute. "Some lady called in earlier, wanting me to draw her a fancy tattoo. With flowers. Asked her what kind she wanted, what's her favorite, but she was all," He wrinkled his nose, raising his voice two octaves. "'Oh, I dunno, maybe…no, how about… or…oh, I dunno they're all just so great. Surprise me!'" His hands were in the air now, mocking two flowers in full bloom on either side of his head. "So yeah." He jammed them back into his pockets. "I have no idea."

"Well, we can take a look around. Maybe inspiration will strike you." She rounded the counter and started toward the first bunch. "Let's see…sunflowers, tulips, chrysanthemums, phlox, hyacinth…mmm how about lilies?"

"Eh the little stem things-"

"The carpels? The stamen?"

"Yeah that…eh, it's a little awkward to draw."

"Okay…lets try our assorted bouquets…"

"That one looks good." He pointed to a batch with daisies, roses, and pink carnations.

"Nice choice, aesthetically. Symbolically speaking, it's a little heavy though." Her brows knit as she scrolled through her mental repertoire. "Daisies are commonly used to represent innocent, pure and loyal love. Roses, of course, are romance, passion. Pink carnations represent a mother's undying love, supposedly derived from the tears of the Virgin Mary-" She blushed a bit when she noticed his stare. "B-But if you like it, you know, aesthetically that's fine…"

"Now that you mention it, they are a little…normal. Anything out of the ordinary? Something special, to make it interesting. Like that." He thrust out a tan finger.

"Circus Roses. Those are usually-" She paused as her gaze flitted in his direction, but, finding that he was actually watching her attentively, she continued. "Associated with happiness or friendship. They're really popular at weddings, lately, and in prom corsages and boutonnieres."

"Huh. I like the colors. It's different. And rose tattoos usually turn out pretty well."

"Great. So," She turned angled for the counter. "Do you want them wrapped, in a vase, or are they fine as they are?"

"Actually…" He grinned sheepishly. "I was wondering if I could just draw them here…I could pay you for that, I guess, but I don't really have anything to do with them if I buy them. Doesn't exactly fit the mood of the shop, ya know?"

"Oh, um…yeah." What are you doing, Maka? He's still a stranger, don't- "It's fine, you can draw them here, free of charge." Dammit.

"Are you sure? I mean…I could, uh, get you a tatt, on the house. A small one, but-"

Oh hell no. "Nah, I'm not really a tattoo person."

"Really?" A devilish smirk overtook his lips. "The pain too much for you?"

"You'd be surprised just how pain tolerant I am." She winked and he pinked just enough to elicit a small laugh from the both of them.

"Alright, I'll get started then. Thanks, uh…"

"Maka."

"Soul."

* * *

><p>He was focused when he worked, startlingly so, and when he suddenly chomped on his bottom lip, Maka thought he'd give himself a second hole. And not just because of his insanely sharp teeth. Though, she'd have to ask him about that eventually…<p>

Shaking her head, she forced her gaze from her new patron to the book in her lap. She wouldn't get a chance to ask him. It's not like she would see him again, even though they worked right next door to one another. This was probably just a one time thing, and what did she care, anyway? It's not like she cared or anything. He was just some random tattoo guy who needed a reference, and she helped him find it. The most she knew was his name…Though she wouldn't mind knowing more…Gritting her teeth, she willed her eyes to remain on the page, no matter how uninteresting Faulkner was compared to the youth crouched on the cool tile. What was interesting, though, when her boss walked in an hour later to find an albino in skinny jeans and a tank top in front of the rose display.

"Good afternoon, Maka." She grinned sweetly and crossed to her employee, raising a purely curious brow.

"He's from Sid's shop. Needed a model for a new tattoo."

"I see." Marie Mjilnor eyed the boy on her floor, sending Maka a bright smile before going into her office in the back.

Turning back to her book, Maka, once again, found her mind and gaze wandering to the stranger perched on the tile a few yards away. She wondered how he could see anything with those bangs in his eyes. Rising, she pulled out one of her pigtails and, after rearranging her hair into a messy bun, she quietly stepped over to him.

"Hey-" She gasped in spite of herself. The drawing on his lap was a nearly perfect copy of the flowers in front of him. A few minor details had yet to be filled in, some leaves and petals yet to be sketched, and it was a pencil drawing, but still…

"Hey." He glanced up, a question in his eyes.

"I uh…I don't know how you can get anything done with all that hair in your face." She gave him a grin that must have looked like a grimace.

"'Least I don't wear pigtails in college." He teased.

"I-" She puffed out her cheeks, pointing to the crown of her head. "Bun. And I do pigtails to keep it out of my face! Works great for me. A- Wait, how did you know I'm in college?"

"Lucky guess? Also, you said you went to school with Blake."

"Right…So…do you need a hair tie?" She thrust out the small band. "You just, uh, have a lot of hair and I didn't know if you had trouble seeing…"

"Uh, yeah, that's cool. Thanks." He took the tie, swiftly gathering and pulling his mane into a small ponytail.

"Y-yeah, no problem." Maka smiled and hastened back to her stool, a light blush on her cheeks. Her stomach fluttered as she noticed how chiseled his jaw was from the side, how focused his crimson eyes were. His entire face, really, was a work of art in itself, despite his outlandish teeth and eyes. Though, really, they just made him all the more desirable. Exotic, almost. Interesting. He was as beautiful as any of the subjects he could have picked.

"Tch."

"You say something?" She could swear there was a laugh laced within his words.

"Nope, nothing at all. Reading!" Maka held up the volume and immediately smacked it back onto her lap for good measure, earning a chuckle and a head shake from the snarky artist as they each went back to their respective passions.


End file.
